Alert archive / Alabama / Tornado Warnings in 2009

Tornado Warning 98, NWS Birmingham, AL

April 19, 20094 counties in Alabama

NWS Birmingham, AL issued this tornado warning at Apr 19, 2009, 9:28 PM CDT for 4 counties in Alabama. It was in force for 47 min. 1 report came from inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The outline as issued, with what was reported inside it.

The facts

Issued
Apr 19, 2009, 9:28 PM CDT (02:28 UTC)
Expired
Apr 19, 2009, 10:15 PM CDT
In force
47 min
Issued by
NWS Birmingham, AL
Area
Storm-based polygon

Counties Calhoun County, AL, Cherokee County, AL, Etowah County, AL, St. Clair County, AL

The radar

The Northeast Alabama radar (KHTX), 109 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 02:32 UTC, the scan nearest the moment this went out.

Open the radar archive at this moment

The archived warnings, watches and discussions in force at that minute are drawn over the scan, this one among them.

What was reported inside it

TimeReportWhereRemark
Apr 19, 9:45 PM CDTTSTM WND DMGOhatchee, ALONE TREE REPORTED DOWN IN THE CITY.

Local storm reports filed while the alert was in force, from inside its polygon or its counties.

The watch it was issued in

The SPC watch in force over the same counties when this warning went out.

IssuedProductOfficeLasted
Apr 19, 8:45 PM CDTTornado WatchSPC4 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Birmingham, AL (KBMX), launched 00:00Z, 2.5 hours before the alert went out and 117 km from the middle of its area. This is the routine balloon launch nearest before it, the air the forecaster had in hand, not a measurement taken for the alert.

Skew-T log-pSkew-T log-p diagram, Birmingham, AL at 00:00Z on 2009-04-20Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 225 joules per kilogram.LCLEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Birmingham, AL at 00:00Z on 2009-04-20The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 466 square meters per square second.19395878Sfc1 km3 km6 km9 kmRMLM
The wind turning with height, colored by layer: ground to 1 km, 1 to 3 km, 3 to 6 km, 6 to 10 km.
Mixed-layer CAPE
225 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
0 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
490 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
52 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
466 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
529 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.6
Supercell composite
2.5

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.

000 
WFUS54 KBMX 200228
TORBMX
ALC015-019-055-115-200315-
/O.NEW.KBMX.TO.W.0098.090420T0228Z-090420T0315Z/

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL
928 PM CDT SUN APR 19 2009

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN BIRMINGHAM HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  NORTHEASTERN ST. CLAIR COUNTY IN CENTRAL ALABAMA...
  NORTHERN CALHOUN COUNTY IN EAST CENTRAL ALABAMA...
  THIS INCLUDES THE CITY OF JACKSONVILLE...
  SOUTHWESTERN CHEROKEE COUNTY IN NORTHEAST ALABAMA...
  SOUTHERN ETOWAH COUNTY IN NORTHEAST ALABAMA...
  THIS INCLUDES THE CITIES OF...RAINBOW CITY...MARKTON...HOKES
  BLUFF...GADSDEN...

* UNTIL 1015 PM CDT

* AT 920 PM CDT...THE PUBLIC REPORTED DAMAGE NEAR HIGHLAND LAKES IN  
  BLOUNT COUNTY..

* OTHER LOCATIONS IN THE WARNING INCLUDE BUT ARE NOT LIMITED TO
  OHATCHEE...ATTALLA...NOCCALULA FALLS...GADSDEN MALL...GLENCOE AND
  ANDERSON

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

A TORNADO WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 100 AM CDT MONDAY MORNING FOR
ALABAMA.

&&

LAT...LON 3413 8573 3378 8563 3377 8626 3398 8631
TIME...MOT...LOC 0227Z 254DEG 24KT 3389 8620

$$
1 follow-up statement
000 
WWUS54 KBMX 200239
SVSBMX

SEVERE WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL
939 PM CDT SUN APR 19 2009

ALC015-019-055-115-200315-
/O.CON.KBMX.TO.W.0098.000000T0000Z-090420T0315Z/
CALHOUN AL-ST. CLAIR AL-ETOWAH AL-CHEROKEE AL-
939 PM CDT SUN APR 19 2009

...A TORNADO WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 1015 PM CDT FOR
SOUTHWESTERN CHEROKEE...SOUTHEASTERN ETOWAH...NORTHEASTERN ST. CLAIR
AND NORTHERN CALHOUN COUNTIES...

AT 938 PM CDT...A TORNADO WAS REPORTED.  THIS TORNADO WAS LOCATED
NEAR WILLIAMS...OR NEAR MARKTON...MOVING EAST AT 30 MPH.

OTHER LOCATIONS IN THE WARNING INCLUDE BUT ARE NOT LIMITED TO RAINBOW
CITY...SOUTHSIDE...NOCCALULA FALLS...GADSDEN...GADSDEN MALL...BIG
WILLS CREEK...NORTHSIDE...GADSDEN STEAM PLANT...GADSDEN WATER
WORKS...GLENCOE...COBB CITY...ANDERSON...HOKES BLUFF...JACKSONVILLE
AND REAVES

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

A TORNADO WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 100 AM CDT MONDAY MORNING FOR
ALABAMA.

&&

LAT...LON 3380 8614 3402 8613 3413 8573 3378 8563
TIME...MOT...LOC 0239Z 256DEG 25KT 3389 8606

$$

The office that day

Everything else NWS Birmingham, AL issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Apr 19, 7:00 PM CDTTornado WarningBMXShelby60 min
Apr 19, 7:05 PM CDTTornado WarningBMXSt. Clair, Shelby, Talladega55 min
Apr 19, 7:28 PM CDTTornado WarningBMXGreene, Hale47 min
Apr 19, 7:33 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXClay, Cleburne, Randolph42 min
Apr 19, 7:38 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXFayette, Jefferson, Tuscaloosa, Walker52 min
Apr 19, 7:44 PM CDTTornado WarningBMXAutauga, Chilton, Coosa, Elmore46 min
Apr 19, 7:47 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXCalhoun, Clay, Cleburne, Randolph, Talladega43 min
Apr 19, 7:47 PM CDTTornado WarningBMXJefferson, Walker17 min
Apr 19, 7:52 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXBlount, Etowah, Jefferson, Walker38 min
Apr 19, 8:10 PM CDTTornado WarningBMXBibb, Hale, Perry65 min
Apr 19, 8:13 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXCalhoun, Cleburne, Talladega47 min
Apr 19, 8:21 PM CDTTornado WarningBMXCoosa, Tallapoosa37 min
Apr 19, 8:23 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXBlount, Cherokee, Etowah, Jefferson, St. Clair, Tuscaloosa and 1 more52 min
Apr 19, 8:48 PM CDTTornado WarningBMXBullock, Macon42 min
Apr 19, 9:01 PM CDTTornado WarningBMXBlount, Calhoun, Etowah, St. Clair29 min
Apr 19, 9:12 PM CDTTornado WarningBMXAutauga, Bibb, Chilton, Dallas, Perry48 min
Apr 19, 9:13 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXCherokee32 min
Apr 19, 9:21 PM CDTTornado WarningBMXLee, Macon, Russell54 min
Apr 19, 9:51 PM CDTTornado WarningBMXCalhoun, Clay, Cleburne, Randolph, Talladega54 min
Apr 19, 9:51 PM CDTTornado WarningBMXLee, Russell54 min
Apr 19, 10:06 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXCalhoun, Cherokee, Cleburne, Etowah39 min
Apr 19, 10:31 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXAutauga, Chilton, Coosa, Elmore, Tallapoosa44 min
Apr 19, 11:13 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXElmore, Tallapoosa47 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Alabama, 2009Every tornado warning in 2009Tornadoes in 2009

Sources

The product and its follow-ups from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service and Storm Prediction Center text; local storm reports from the same archive; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.